Message Recieved
by PinkFever
Summary: Karma has a hard time keeping a certain assassin off his mind, and no matter how hard he tries to forget it it only seems to get worse; up to the point that the other haunts him in his dreams. Now how is he going to deal with this? (I own nothing but the idea, a slice of Karmagisa)
1. I'm Alright

**So yeah, Assassination Classroom. Some Karma x Nagisa.**

 **Yeah...**

 **Yeah, I can do that...**

* * *

For the past couple of weeks Karma has had the same damn nightmare.

Now at first it didn't bother him. Yes they were, well... quite disturbing, maybe even a little concerning, but that still never stopped him from going to bed every night.

The first time it happens he finds it difficult to go back to sleep. He didn't think much of it then, getting dressed and ready for school as usual, but the red head did find himself sending a quick text to the blunet that morning, something about not being late for class. It wasn't much, but it did get him through the day without any problems.

Days go by and Karma still finds it more difficult to brush aside the nightmares. It was never the same one, but the ending always remained consistent; Nagisa dying in a hundred different ways while Karma couldn't do a damn thing about it. One morning he woke up covered in sweat, hands shaking and throat dry. He tried to grab him, but in the end he couldn't save him, watching the other plummet to his death with a scream that would probably haunt him for a while. It was harder for Karma that day, but after hanging out with Nagisa after school, he felt a little better knowing for sure everything was fine.

The following week was when he finally decides to stay up a little later at night. To keep himself occupied he watches the news, plays some games, and even goes over his homework a few times (not that he needed to), He even cleans the house a bit when he has the energy, picking up some scattered clothes here and there and whatever trash was left around from last nights dinner - anything to keep himself occupied.

One night Karma finds himself half asleep on the couch when his phone starts to vibrate in his pocket, sliding the devise open and seeing the familiar user name attached to the screen.

 **Nagisa, 11:37 - "hey, you still awake?"**

Karma finds himself immediately sending a response, letting out a quiet sigh as he patiently waits for the other to respond.

 **Karma, 11:37 - "wow Nagisa, isn't it past your bedtime? i'm surprise your still awake after that extra training course we had today."**

 **Nagisa, 11:39 - "very funny, you know all we did was an extra lap. but i'm doing fine thank you.**

 **Nagisa, 11:40 - "anyways, I was wondering if everything was ok with you. you looked really tired today."**

 **Karma, 11:40 - "did I now?"**

He pulls up his camera and flips the angle, spotting very small bags under his eyes. Nothing to noticeable, but if you got up close enough they were pretty visible. For a moment he thinks about a response.

 **Karma, 11:43 - "just had to take care of a few things at home."**

 **Nagisa, 11:44 - "late ate night?"**

 **Karma, 11:44 - "aw, are you worried about me~?"**

Minutes go by before Nagisa says anything else, a few long minutes in Karma's opinion.

He starts biting the nail of his thumb at some point, a habit he got into when ever he felt anxious as a child, and quickly tucks his hand under his thigh. He learned to control it over the years, but when he did catch himself doing it from time to time, it felt really childish. Karma immediately unlocks his phone when his phone vibrates again.

 **Nagisa, 11:52 - "to be honest, a little bit yeah."**

Something tugged at his heart as he read the sentence over, his breath hitching a little as he thought back on one of his nightmares.

A conversation much similar to this one happened while the two of them were taking a walk somewhere close to the city. For some reason they were older, and Nagisa's hair was put up in a pony tail (it actually didn't look that bad). He was going on about something before asking Karma if he was alright, given a very bland response before being teased about worrying so much. At one point they were both suddenly held at gun point, and Karma could only watch as the other was shot at multiple times.

He watched Nagisa hit the floor with a heavy thud, eyes cold as they remained frozen in fear - it would take a lot to forget that. The murderer shot at Karma next before he woke up, but the image of Nagisa on the floor like that, _dead_ , it still haunts him, and that dream could almost be considered 'kind' compared to the others he's had.

Again, normally he would shake it off and never think about it again, but when they keep happening night after night after night- over and over and over again like that, it can takes it toll on you. Karma didn't even know _why_ he had these dreams, and that's what drove him _crazy_.

He was a tough guy, everyone knew it - hell he was an assassin! Death was practically his occupation, it should be the least of his concern! So why was he letting this get to him? None of it was real. Nagisa was alive and was damn well capable of taking care of himself, so why worry? Dreams were dreams, not reality.

None of them were real.

Karma chuckles. My did he feel like an idiot, letting something as simple as a bad dream get the best of him. What the hell happened to him? Sleep deprivation was seriously no joke.

 **Nagisa, 12:04 - "Karma, you still there?"**

He broke from his thoughts and slightly shook his head, sliding open his phone again. He missed three more messages, two from Nagisa and one from his father. He ignores the last one and opens Nagisa's contact instead, one message asking him what he was doing now and the other asking if he felt any better than he did that morning. _Was this guy always such a worry wart?_

 **Karma, 12: 05 - "sorry, had to use the bathroom really wuick"**

 **Karma, 12:05 - "*quick"**

 **Nagisa. 12:06 - "wow a typo. that's a rare sight to see. you must be pretty tired."**

 **Karma, 12:06 - "well your not wrong."**

 **Nagisa, 12:06 - "then why not go to bed now? can't you do whatever you need to do tomorrow?"**

Karma feels the corner of his mouth slip up.

 **Karma, 12:07 - "can't."**

 **Nagisa, 12:07 - "why not?"**

 **Karma, 12:08 - "wouldn't you like to know~ "  
**

 **Nagisa, 12:09 - "oh hush."**

It never occurred to him how late it was until he got the last text, but what surprised him more was the fact that Nagisa was still talking to him at such an hour. They had school in... seven? Eight hours? And yet,here he was, responding to every message. Karma lifts a brow and scratches the back of his head, sitting up with a low grunt.

 **Karma, 12:11 - "Hey, Nagisa."**

 **Nagisa, 12:11 - "Yes?"**

 **Karma: 12:12 - "Why are u still up?"**

There's another brief pause before he gets a response.

 **Nagisa: 12:15 - "oh you know, just have to take care of a few things around the house. ;)"**

 _So he saw through my lie_ Karma thought, and well, he wouldn't be to convinced either if someone told him something like that. Nagisa wasn't dumb after all, it would take a lot more than a white lie to get past him.

He really was being an idiot.

 **Karma, 12:17 - "throwing more lies into this conversation I see."**

 **Nagisa, 12:12 - "oh shut up, you started this and you know it.**

 **Nagisa, 12:12 - "are you going to really tell me whats wrong now?"**

The idea had crossed his mind. Karma was smart enough to know that keeping things bottled up like this would only make things worse, but bringing the topic up with Nagisa was a little...well, uncomfortable. For various reasons.

 **Karma, 12:13 - "I'm alright Nagisa, really."**

A lame response, but it was something, and it looked like the other got the message and decided not to pry any further.

 **Nagisa, 12:15 - "Alright then."**

Karma had nothing else to say so he decides to leave the conversation a lone for a while, getting up and grabbing some food from the fridge before planting himself back on the couch. He goes through a few channels on TV, all of which were either breaking news or some cartoon - annoying really. After flipping through a few more channels he just shut off the devise all together, embracing himself with silence. He was tired. Very tired, and sleep never sounded so good. In fact, it sounded _wonderful,_ so Karma decided to do just that.

Yes, he knew the odds of what might happen if he did, but he could handle it. Besides, they were just dreams. Everything was fine, he was fine, _Nagisa_ was fine. So why bother?

"Just sleep already." The red head tells himself aloud, and you know what, why the hell not.

* * *

Nagisa doesn't show up for school that day, and that bugs Karma.

A lot.

Some assumed he had a cold. As Okano pointed out he has been sneezing a lot lately. He's also been slacking off on most of his homework, which was definatley not like Nagisa. He did struggle with his work every now and then, but at least he managed to get things done on time, sometimes even earlier then needed.

Nagisa was never absent. He would never skip school because of some stupid cold. _Was he hurt? Did he hurt himself?_ Karma starts biting the nub of his thumb agian, the nail completely gone. He was certain he was just being paranoid now, letting his thoughts run wild like this. His dreams weren't real and he had to remember that. Nagisa didn't get hit by a car or truck on his way to school,he wasn't mugged or shot while taking the bus, he wasn't kidnapped or drowned or strangled or gutted or beheaded or buried or skinned alive. He was fine. Nagisa was fine. He was ok.

Everything was fine.

"Hey, any one know were Nagisa lives? I can stop by and give him some medicine." Comes Kanzaki, shuffling through her bag and pulling out a few cough drops. "I got a cold recently and these work wonders on soar throats."

"You carry those around with you?" Asks Maehara.

Hazawa shrugs. "So what if she does? I actually buy some myself sometimes because they taste a lot like candy."

"But there for people who get sick." Comes Okuda. "There probably bad for you if you don't use them properly because-"

"Hey, I don't care what you say, those things are _amazing_ and can do wonders for migraines too." She leans back into her chair and smirks. "Actually you think you can pass me some, Kanzaki? We have a test in the next hour and I need my fix."

Kanzaki gives an awkward laugh. "Actually, I plan on saving the rest of these for Nagisa. Sorry." She turns to Kayano who had just finished putting away a few books into her small bag. "Do you know were Nagisa lives?"

"Hm? Nagisa?" The actress ponders for a bit, thinking back on the time they've spent together. Sure the two of them have hung out once or twice, but she was pretty sure she's never even seen his house. Maybe it was because he didn't want her meeting his mom or something? Then again, having a girl come over a boys house at all would be pretty weird. She finally shrugs. "I honestly don't know. The only person I know who's been to his house is Karma I think."

"Karma's been to Nagisa's house?" Nakamura chimes in, lifting her head from her desk. "For what?"

Terasaka chuckles. "Probably to cosplay or some shit."

The blond smirks. "Well I'm not proving you wrong."

"Come on guys, let's not talk about someone who can't defend themselves. " Says Isogai, stretching a bit in his seat. "And speaking of Karma, were did he go?"

"He went to use the bathroom during Ms. Bitches' lecture and hasn't been back since." Sugino sighs. "I swear that guys just asking for trouble now."

Kataoka rolls her eyes. "I think that's the only thing Karma looks for these days. Wait, wasn't her class like in the first period?"

Kurahashi looks up from her book. "Yeah, your right. He's been gone that long?"

"And no ones looking for him?" Okuda asks, slightly worried.

Kayano makes her way over to the window and slides it open, poking her head out a little to search for the missing other. "Well it's not like he could have gotten far right? Did he go home or something."

"What? You know were he lives to?"

She glares at Terasaka. "Do you just assume I know were everybody lives now?"

"Well you are always around those two, so why not."

"He's probably just wondering around again waiting for Koro sensei to find him" Isogai mutters as he rests his head into his hand. "He's done it before and he'll do it again."

"Wow, look at Mr. positive being all mopey." Teases Nakamura as she puts her head down again, arms hanging lazily to her side. "Careful, lets all try to stay in character now."

At some point the discussion about Karma's disappearance shifts into a whole other topic, something about Okajima trying to convince everyone he's actually dated a girl before (no one believed him even with photo's), but after a few minutes into the conversation and laughter, Kayano found herself looking out the window ever now and then.

It wasn't like she was worried about Karma - of course he could handle himself just fine, but it was just _something_. She didn't even know what it was. Usually when he left it was after a test or before a class he didn't like, but leaving at the start of the day? It just seemed off. _Did Karma ever leave before first period?_

An hour goes by before Koro sensei finally comes back from lunch, Ritsu pointing out that he was approximately 0.027 seconds later than usual - his excuse being just as poor as his timing.

Besides that everything from there seemed pretty normal, but it surprised them all when he not once referred to or mention the red head. It was, of course, none of anyone's business, but it was the teachers job to keep a watchful eye on his students. Maybe he was use to this, or perhaps he probably already knew were he was and decided to leave him alone for personal reasons. It was tempting to ask, but something told Kayano she should just leave it alone for the time being.

* * *

The sun starts to go down by the time Karma makes it home.

The air outside was a lot cooler than he expected, a minor shiver leaving the assassin as he quickly stuffed a hand into his pocket. He looks at his phone to check the time. _7:49,_ it read. Karma clicks his tongue and stuffs it back into his pocket before fumbling for his keys, remembering that he forgot to take them out of the house that morning. Cursing to himself he starts rummaging through one of the many bushes he had planted on his lawn, fishing out a tattered, sealed envelope before tearing it in half and watching a spare key fall to the floor. His father was the one who hid it, mostly because he was the one who usually forgot or lost his own house key, but before it was under the door mat. Karma had moved it hoping to wake up and find the old man screaming at the top of his lungs for him to let him inside, of course, if he ever came home. Karma made a mental note to put it back later.

He unlocked the door and slammed it shut, making his way upstairs and into his room before pulling out the cord to his phone charger and plugging the devise in.

Damn it, he's been so careless lately that he forgot to charge his own cell phone last night! Why has he been forgetting everything!? _At least it's not dead,_ He told himself, but it was almost at 5 percent. When has he ever let his phone go to 5 freakin percent?!

He licks his chapped lips and takes a seat on the bed, fidgeting with his fingers and repeatedly taping his foot. While he was out he decided it would be a great idea to try and get his mind off things. Taking one day off of school wasn't going to kill him or hurt his grade, right? Well a cafe just so happened to be open so Karma ordered himself a cup of coffee because why not. It wasn't something he had every day, and his eye lids were so heavy he needed something to help him get through another hour.

Well one thing led to another and one cup became two, then two became three, and three became four. Of course, after two he decided it would be best to stick with decaf, but even so he suddenly found it very difficult to keep still.

To keep himself moving he made his way around town, keeping up with the rapid pace of his beating heart. Around noon he came across the very train station Nagisa took to school. Of course the other teen was no were to be seen, however Karma couldn't help but stick around for a few minutes just to hopefully bump into him by chance, but minutes became hours, and hours became _what the hell am I even doing..._ and after looking at his phone for the fifth time that evening, that's when he noticed how low his battery was.

His heart had skipped two beats and he practically jogged his way home, almost giving himself a heart attack in the process. Now here he was, cold and high on caffeine, with nothing better to do than to try and keep still. What the hell was happening to him? Why on earth was he acting like this? More importantly, were was Nagisa?

 _Nagisa_

An image of the boy came to mind and Karma felt himself twitch a little. What was _wrong_ with him?

He was fine. Nothing bad could happen to Nagisa even if the world wanted to throw the worst crap it had at him all at once. It was Koro sensei's job was to protect all of them and keep them alive after all, Karma tested the teacher himself and jumped off a cliff thinking it was all some kind of joke - who would believe an octopus man threatening to blow up the entire world would put his life on the line to save a bunch of children. In the end he was proven wrong, and ever since the yellow freak had almost been like a second guardian to him, not that he would ever admit it.

Karma sighs at the thought and looks back at his phone. It was at 7 percent. How long did it take to charge again?

 _A whole sleeps worth,_ something tells him _,_ but he ignores it and decides to find something else to do.

Before getting up his computer starts to blink and a familiar ring breaks the silent void surrounding him. The sound doesn't startle him, but it does make him a little curious. He doesn't use Skype very often, the only time he's ever had to use it was when his parents made the effort to check up on him after finding out he got put into Class E. They scolded him for a minute than went into parent mode and asked him the usual questions every parent needs to ask to keep a child happy, such as "How was your day?" or "Make any new friends.", nothing he couldn't by pass with a few lies.

The red head makes his way over to the monitor and takes a seat at his computer desk, quickly typing in the password and grimacing at the site of his parents name. He put them under the titles "Mom & Dad", but something about it always felt empty, he had been meaning to change it, but why bother since they never call, until now that is.

His cursor hovers over the accept button and he lets out another deep sigh before clicking it, masking on the smile he knew best before saying, "Hey, whats going on, pops?"

For some reason his mom was out of the picture at the moment, and because of the sound of rustling in the background Karma assumed she was just touching up her make up. She was never seen anywhere without all that crap on her face. His father on the other hand look the same as always, dark hair matching both his suit and ego. It was always difficult to tell what he was feeling, so Karma just assumed he constantly had something shoved up his ass. They didn't have much in common, only sharing the same eyes and sly personality, the one gift Karma ever liked from him that wasn't signed and bought by an assistant.

The two momentarily stared at one another, the man looking him up and down before clearing his throat. "Karma."

Karma playfully bats his eyes and leans in a little. "Yes, Otōsan?"

His father looked slightly uncomfortable, and Karma wasn't sure if it was because he looked older, or if he was just constipated. He blinks and seems to scan the room behind him before saying anything else. "You look well."

Karma has to keep himself from laughing.

 _After 6 months without seeing your only child that's all you have to say?_

He want's to tell him just that, but all the while, why stop the acting here? He wanted to drag this out a little longer, just to see how much the old man could put up with. With a light-hearted chuckle he adds, "I am well, thank you. And you?"

"Fine."

It grows awkward and quiet for about a minute, stares between the two growing more intense as if to test who would break first.

Mrs. Akabane is the one to end the silent feud, putting in another one of her golden ear rings as she finally came into view, coming from what Karma assumed was the bathroom from whatever hotel they were in this time.

She straightens herself out a bit and pulls up a chair beside her husband, showing off those pearly white teeth of hers as she gives her son that million dollar smile magazines tend to think she has. He would be lying if he said his mom wasn't pretty, he did look more like her than his father anyways, red hair and all. She was also a lot more expressive and well mannered, knowing when and how to say things rather then speaking the first thing on her mind, and when she did, she usually meant it; but of course when it came down to responsibilities, she was very negligent and usually ended up letting others do the dirty work for her. And with his fathers money, well, it made her excuses seem a lot more believable.

"Hello sweetie, how have you been? Everything well I hope?"

Her tones forced, and it wouldn't take a genius to tell. Maybe she had a long day, who knows, but if Karma were to assume things, she did look at least a little happy to see him - either that or she was happy to see that once again money helped her out of another responsibility she got herself into.

He smiles back at her. "As I said, everything fine."

"Ah, good-good. And school?"

"Yes, schools fine to."

His father narrows his eyes. "Is that so."

"Yep. Everything's A-ok."

"Oh sweetie, don't be so hard on him." His mother puts a hand on his shoulder in an attempt to loosen him up more, slightly squeezing it for extra measure. "He's just at that age, let him have some fun."

Mr. Akabane glances at her and shifts a way from her hand. "Fine." He puts his attention on Karma again. "We called to ask you if you had received any sort of packaging in the last couple of days. Anything at all addressed to me or your mother."

Karma lifts a brow. "Oh? What kind of package?"

"That is a yes or no question."

He dramatically puts his hands up in defense. "Woah there! No need to get hasty!"

"Karma dear, please answer the question." His mother pleads, and he sees that none of them found his little reaction very amusing.

To contact him through Skype like this just to ask for a simple package? It must have been pretty important if they wanted to see his face just to make sure. His parents constantly kept business related things secret from him, so every now and then he would get his hands dirty just to find out the truth for himself, curiosity was a part of him after all, so if he did get a package specifically for them, he would have already opened it.

Karma can't even remember the last time he received anything in the mail, excluding bills and junk mail, and not wanting to sit around any longer, he decides its best to just tell the truth.

"Sorry, I haven't."

His father crosses his arms. "And your not lying?"

"Now would I ever lie to you?"

The man narrows his gaze "Karma, I would watch that tone if I were you."

"What, it's just a yes or no question." He chuckles, and his father does _not_ look happy.

This was exactly what Karma was expecting. Whenever his family conversed with one another it was always like pulling teeth. One thing always led to another and it was never a surprise when things started to go south, that's why whenever his parents called it would never be longer than ten or fifteen minutes. So, being the conniving-red devil many sought him out to be, Karma usually wanted to take what was worth and do whatever it took to piss them off. Consequences be damned.

His mother breaks the tension between the both of them by clearing her throat and letting out an airy laugh, something Karma has sworn she's used one to many times. After a while, it really got annoying.

"I believe him dear. If he were lying I think this kind of play would be a lot more convincing." She says, placing a hand on her husbands back this time and rubbing very light circles. Her glare catches Karma's, and it warns him to not push the conversation any further.

Karma blinks and lets out a sigh. "Wow, you can read me like a book. Scary." He see's a very faint smile come across her pale skin, something that only shows whenever she let's her guard down. He wasn't sure the last time he's seen it, but it has been a while. The gesture helps him relax a little bit. It was nice to be reminded that his mother could actually be honest once in a while - it almost felt like a honor - a privilege.

"Of course I can, I am your mother after all, Karma. Don't take my instincts lightly."

The teen leans in closer to his desk and rests his head in his hand. "Never did."

His father shifts in his seat and leans away from his wife's affection, straightening himself out again. "Fine. I believe you. However, if anything is delivered to the house this week, I want you to leave it in our rooms and do _not_ open it. Understood?"

"Yeah, yeah. I understand." Karma quickly responds. He didn't want this conversation to go any further, it was already boring and he really needed to use the bathroom. All that coffee had to go somewhere at some point, and it didn't help that he was still fidgeting. "Alright, it's getting late and I have a test tomorrow. We can stop here, right?"

His mother frowns. "You say that like this is some sort of business call."

 _It kind of is..._

"Ah, sorry. Just tired. It's been a long day." Karma forces a yawn and lazily scratches his head, something he's always done whenever he was ready to go to bed. He thought that would hopefully throw them off a little and they'll finally leave him alone, and it seemed to do just the trick.

His acting was crap, let alone his excuses, and seeing how well his parents could play that part, it was almost like watching that one dancer screw up on stage in a group performance. His parents probably already knew he was hiding something, but they didn't say anything, giving each other a knowing look before deciding to bid their fair wells.

"Very well." His father says, his mother giving him a small wave before bidding him goodnight in a language Karma believed to be French, masking another smile for him as she blew him one last quick kiss before disconnecting their call.

And just like that, he was free.

Karma leans back into his chair and lets out another obnoxious sigh, one that was loud and heavy. He spins himself around in the chair a few times before looking over to his phone again. It was better, on 37 percent, and it wasn't like he would be needing it again any time soon, so he yanked the charger off and made his way over to the bathroom.

He missed one or two emails, none important, but what really caught his attention was a text message. He eyed the name and was disappointed when it wasn't Nagisa's. No, instead it was Rio who had asked him about some kind of pen that she had been looking for since last week. She apparently found it somewhere in the depths of her bag and had enough ink to finish the test he missed.

 **Rio, 10:41 - "found it. nailed it."** Karma reads, a little black pen at the end of the message along with that one yellow emoji that sticks out it's tongue.

He rolls his eyes and tosses the devise on the sink, prepared to take off his shirt for a nice hot shower before finding himself face to face in the mirror. He was pulled back a little by the site - his hair wasn't tangled or anything, but it had a lot more strands of hair sticking out than he would have liked; his eyes had faint circles underneath them and he looked a lot paler than usual.

Karma scrunches his face at the site. _I went out like this today,_ He reminded himself, and just because he usually didn't care about how he looked, it didn't mean he wanted to walk around looking like 'who shot john' - an old American phrase he once over heard in a restaurant and hasn't forgotten since for whatever reason.

He opens a drawer and pulls out a brush, straightening his hair out a bit while looking around for that extra tub of toothpaste he forgot to get himself the day before. He's been really off his game lately, and it was definitely not an overstatement.

His parents, teacher, and even a few of his classmates could tell. It wasn't hard, and Karma was practically the master of deceivers, so in a way, it kind of bit his pride a little.

 _I need a shower..._

He told himself, and the thought of being surrounded by steam and silence, enough time for him to think, sounded like a pretty good deal, so he'll do just that.

* * *

 **This turned out to be A LOT longer then it intended to be, so another chapter will happen very soon (just need to polish it up. not gonna lie I was a bit lazy with this, so please inform me with any mistakes)**

 **So what do you think of it so far? Reviews are welcomed and don't forget to follow! 3**


	2. Beautiful

**Whats this? Another chapter? Well, I hope you enjoy it!**

 **Not gonna lie, it was kind of fun writing this one. (Karma's pain is my own. Poor baby deserves more)**

* * *

It was two in the morning when Karma woke up on the floor, and his stomach was absolutely _killing_ him.

Pain was something he's always been able to tolerate, but this- _this_ was taking it to a whole other level.

 _Damn..._

He hunches over and curls himself up, forehead to the floor while a low groan escapes his chapped lips. He had another nightmare, one that involved Nagisa being gutted from the inside out in front of his very eyes. The killer was a maniac, someone who he couldn't even recognize, but his eyes... the killers eyes were strikingly similar to his.

For whatever reason the two of them were held captive in what looked to be some kind of laboratory, both in separate rooms, but the walls were see through and they could easily communicate. They wore white garments, similar to what patients had on when admitted into the hospital, and admittedly they were pretty comfortable.

They were given some food, simple bread and water, before they sat down close to the wall between them and ate together. Nagisa did most of the talking, and a took a moment for Karma to realize that this time the blunet had much shorter hair, and he also looked a little bit taller. Of course, he still towered over him, and if he took a guess their age range was probably around early to mid twenties, but even so the smaller didn't look very different.

Karma listened to the other go on about something to do with the food not being to bad, watching him fidget with his fingers as he ate small pieces of his bread - kind of reminded him of a small gerbil. Unfortunately, at some point during the conversation, armed men had come storming into both their rooms, taking them forcefully before throwing them both in another room surrounded by what looked to be doctors.

They were tied up and placed on large steel tables, ones that you usually saw in a science lab. It was at that moment Karma felt the fear he was oh so familiar with. Unlike some of his other nightmares he was aware this time around, aware and very alert. He knew what was about to happen, he knew it was impossible to stop what was about to happen, the only thing he didn't know was how to handle it. He struggled and forced his head up to get a better view of Nagisa, but doctors surrounded the other teen making it impossible to see anything.

His heart dropped when screams of terror filled the room, the sound so piercing he could feel a faint vibration coming from the steel bellow him.

It made his skin crawl.

Karma remembered finding himself frozen in both fear and shock, eyes wide. He tried to speak, but nothing came out, nothing but the chilling sound of Nagisa's screams filling his ears. It got louder and louder as time went on, seconds seeming like hours the more Karma tried to break free of his confinements, and it only made him feel worse when the site of red could be seen leaking off the other table.

Some doctors stood behind others, handing them tools piled on another steel table close by. Karma felt his stomach turn when he saw one doctor from the front handing over something plump and dripping red to another doctor behind him. He didn't know what it was right away, but after the doctor turned to him he got a better view. The plump 'something' looked much clearer to him now.

It was an eye.

Nagisa's eye.

Karma felt the taste of bile reach his throat. Two doctors held both his arms despite already being tied up, one holding his mouth open in a tight grip while the doctor with the eye hovered over him. Karma couldn't see a face. They had one, but at the same time, they didn't. Only the outlines of what would be there were visible. He tried turning his face away from them but their grip only tightened, the eye getting closer and closer to his mouth. He felt the bitter taste of iron as drops of blood fell from the organ and tears started to swell in his own eyes. Nagisa's screams rang through out the room, and Karma wasn't entirely sure if he heard his own before the squelching organ met his tongue.

Oh the _sounds_ it made as he was forced to chew, every 'squish' and 'pop' quickly sending the bread and water back up his throat. A hand covered his mouth, forcing everything inside to stay inside, and just as he felt himself starting to choke on his own vomit he woke up, stomach pain and all.

After recalling the memory Karma quickly put a hand to his mouth and ran to the restroom, heaving over the toilet before finally throwing up all of what little he had a few hours ago.

The sounds he made echoed off the walls, but they couldn't over power the haunting screams Karma refused to forget.

Nagisa was in pain. And he couldn't do a thing about it. Nagisa _died_ because he was weak.

He was weak...

Karma felt tears sting his eyes, the pain in stomach gradually going away the longer he remained over the toilet bowl.

After a while he found himself flushing the toilet before getting off the floor, knees sore as he pulled himself up and towards the sink. Without looking in the mirror he turns the faucet on and cups his hands into the water, rinsing out his mouth out before thoroughly washing his sweaty face. He takes off his shirt and tosses it on the floor, angrily stomping over to his dresser and putting on a newer, cleaner one.

It must have been all that coffee he had.

The stuff never agreed with him in the first place, so having that much probably wasn't the smartest idea. With a sigh Karma looks at the digital clock on his night stand. 3:30 am, it reads. _Fantastic..._

What on earth did he ever do to deserve this? More importantly, _why_ was it all even happening?

He felt much better, but the bitter taste of caffeine and vomit lingered in his throat. He picked a bad time to forget about toothpaste...

 _ **Beep Beep**_

"Hm?"

His phone flickers on and a message appears on screen before him.

It was from Nagisa.

The red head reaches for the devise and clumsily fumbles with it, fingers shaking as he quickly slides it open.

 **Nagisa, 3:31 - "is tomorrow ok?"**

He reads it over a few times, once out loud.

 _What?_

 **Karma, 3:32 - "whats going on tomorrow?"**

He taps his foot impatiently, going through a few of his previous messages with the blunet before his phone goes off again.

 **Nagisa, 3:37 - "oh sorry that was for someone else."**

 **Nagisa, 3:37 - "wait, your still up?"**

 **Karma, 3:37 - "Where were you today?"**

Karma wants to kick himself for that.

He sounded desperate. To desperate. Now Nagisa was going to think he was some kind of freak - a stalker. Wait, he had every right to worry! He didn't hear from him at all today! This...this was normal. Friends worry about each other. All the time. That was a natural response.

 **Nagisa, 3:38 - "where was I?"**

 _What else do you think I mean?_

 **Karma, 3:38 - "yeah, we had a test today and it's not like you to miss out on those."**

 **Nagisa, 3:38 - "Yeah i know, sorry. I'm alright though if that's what your wondering."**

His fingers hover over the key board for a bit, teeth gnawing at the bottom of his dry lip as he thought of another response. His mind was everywhere, and it was still difficult for him to keep still.

 **Karma, 3:39 - "don't worry I believe you. But i would be lying if I didn't say the others were worried about you."**

A few minutes go by before he gets another message.

 **Nagisa, 3:43 - "Oh yeah?"**

Karma doesn't know what else to say. He looks at the time again and reminds himself it was far to early to ask to come over. He's never been over Nagisa's house before, but damn it wouldn't take him very long to find out were he lived. It was pathetic how desperate he was just to hear his voice. He was being pathetic.

 **Nagisa, 3:46 - "Karma are you ok?"**

This catches Karma by surprise, and he immediately responds with-

 **Karma, 3:46 - "Yeah."**

A very simple answer. To simple.

His nerves were shot to all hell, and Karma couldn't help but put down whatever first came to mind.

Lies. Karma had gone through almost half of his conversations with lies recently, and this was no exception. At school, to his parents. Nothing but lies. About his dreams, about how he felt - this was honestly slowly driving him mad. No one could see it but himself, himself and a certain expert assassin that is. After all, Nagisa wasn't dumb.

 **Nagisa, 3:47 - "Karma, whats wrong?"**

His breath hitched, fingers hovering over the key board once again.

 **Nagisa, 3:48 - "Karma this isn't funny."**

 **Karma, 3:49 - "Why would I find that funny? It is funny how worried you are about me though."**

Karma chuckles, but he knows he shouldn't find any of this funny. It was becoming a problem, a problem he really should fix and fast. Therapy was already out of the question, for a number of reasons, and Koro sensei would probably listen, but he would just take it to far and pester him about the problem. Man, this was frustrating...

He runs a hand through his now tangled hair and sighs. _I really need some sleep..._ Karma had bags under his eyes and probably looked like a total mess, not to mention he smelled pretty bad to. It was probably a smarter choice to just skip school all together tomorrow, not just for his sick but everyone else's. He'll call Nagisa tomorrow or something.

His phone goes off again.

 **Nagisa, 3:51 - "i'm coming over."**

...

...

 _...what_

Karma rubs his eye and blearily reads the message over again, eyes widening as he turns to his alarm clock. It was going on 4:00 in the morning, and Nagisa was coming to his place? At 4 in the morning? On a school night?

Now?

 **Karma, 3:53- "Nagisa don't do that."**

He doesn't hear from the other after that, even after he tried to call him twice. Karma cursed and stormed out of his room, finding one of the home phones and dialing his number there. Still no answer. _What the hell was he thinking!?_

Karma shot him three more messages, none of which were read. Finding it the best option not to worry to much, he decides to keep himself occupied with the water he so desperately needed. He goes through three glasses before trying to contact Nagisa again, and of course he doesn't respond. It's possible something happened to him. He could have gotten run over by a car, or mugged, or shot, or kidnapped. Nagisa could be in danger, and here Karma was keeping his ass at home covered in sweat and body odor. How was Nagisa even getting here? He doesn't drive. Is someone dropping him off? A taxi?

Karma swallows and finds that water alone wasn't enough to quench his thirst. He goes for the fridge and eyes down his fathers beer cans, pulling one out and glancing it over. It was small. He wouldn't drink all of it, just a tad.

A tad was all he needed.

* * *

The door bell rings and Karma grins from ear to ear.

"It's open~" He hums, and perks up when he finally hears something _beautiful_.

Nagisa sounded a lot more like a girl compared to Karma's own voice. Putting aside the fact that he looked a lot more feminine then he did, Nagisa was more of a man than any other middle schooler he could think of. He was kind, gentle, he knew what to say and when to say it - he was amazing. Nagisa was just beautiful.

...On second thought, Nagisa was a lot more girly then Karma was willing to admit.

"Karma?"

Karma closes his eyes and sinks further into the couch. Just hearing him, knowing he was here, safe and sound, was enough to give him closure. Along with the alcohol Karma felt so much more relaxed. So at peace.

So tired...

"Na-gi-sa-kun~" Karma hums again, punctuating every letter as best as he could. He hears footsteps coming down the hall and gets up, finding himself meeting the latter half way down the hall.

He was wearing that old coat he wore when it got cold, his hair tied back into those girly pigtails he always has them in. Karma admired the other for a moment, taking in the feeling that Nagisa was actually _here_. He was ok.

"Karma?"

The voice was more concerned the second time he called his name, but that wasn't important. Karma waves and motions him over. "I've got some popcorn for ya in the living room. You want some?" He doesn't give him time to answer, instead he wanders back over to the living room and plops himself back on the couch.

This made him happy. This made Karma _so_ happy! No more anxiety, no more nightmares - everything was finally alright! Things had finally decided to go his way! A sigh leaves him again as he turns around, finding Nagisa at the door.

Nagisa glances at Karma after taking a quick look around, eyes wide when coming across an empty beer can on the floor. "What the-!? Karma were you drinking!?"

Karma shrugs. "Its possible."

The blunet quickly goes over to the can and picks it up, finding two more cans. "Oh my god. How much did you- Hey!"

Karma had yanked him onto the couch and pulled him in for a tight hug, his face buried into the smaller's hair, the scent of lavender filling his nostrils. He sighs longingly and mutters about how good he smelt, but Nagisa refused to listen, instead he pushes himself away from the red head and falls to the floor.

Karma laughs and sits up. "What? Was that to creepy?"

"Very!" Nagisa says quickly, pinching his nose. "And you smell awful! Whens the last time you took a bath?"

Karma shrugs again. "Still want that popcorn?" He reaches over to the other side of the couch and holds up half an empty bowl of popcorn. "I don't think it's very warm any more, but I guess it's still edible." He takes a handful of the treat and pops it in his mouth. "Orry, I ha a ew"

"Please don't talk with your mouth full..." Nagisa gets up and snatches the bowl away. "And come with me. You need a shower." He yanks Karma off the couch, not to hard but not very gentle either. He doesn't look back at him once while going up the stairs, only repeatedly asking him questions about what happened and why he was like this. Of course, Karma thought it would be funny to mess with him, half assing all his answers with sarcasm just to anger him a bit, but Unfortunately Nagisa didn't seem very phased with his poor attempt, and instead kept on questioning him as if he didn't hear him.

They ended up using one of the restrooms near his fathers office, and just the thought of being in there made Karma's head hurt. Nagisa ordered him to undress while he went to fetch some clothes in his room, coming back moments later with one of Karma's old white T-shirts and some pajama bottoms.

"Listen, take a quick shower then we'll talk. I'll be in your room ok so just... clean up."

Karma blinks a few times and watches the other place the clothes on the sink's counter before taking his leave, without even looking at him once. Not once! Was Nagisa angry with him? _Maybe I just smell that bad..._ The thought makes him want to laugh.

"Ok." He says aloud, to no in particular really, but it seemed necessary to give his guest an honest answer at some point. Karma didn't want to be that rude.

* * *

It takes him a good ten minutes to finally finish his shower, another five to figure out why he kept putting his shirt on backwards, and a solid two to figure out were the hell Nagisa went.

Karma refused to panic, not now. Nagisa was here. He was with him, so everything was fine. Holding his breath he went back down stairs and looked around, thankful to find the other in the kitchen. He was making something, a pot boiling on the stove while Nagisa was putting something back in the fridge. Karma hummed and got behind him, resting his chin on Nagisa's head while looping both his arms around his waist. He had forgotten how tiny he was.

"K-karma!" Nagisa stammers, quickly jerking himself away from the drunken. He flushes a bit and _god_ Karma loved it when he did that. "What's with you!?"

Karma fakes a pout. "Eh~? Did I do something wrong, Nagisa-kun?" He looks away and fakes a tear. "Or do you just resent me that much..."

Nagisa rolls his eyes. "I don't resent you, alright? Anyways, feeling any better?"

"I smell better."

"We'll that's good." He looks him over. "You didn't dry your hair did you."

"Hm?" The red head runs a few of his fingers through his damp hair. "I didn't?"

"No, you didn't. Look your dripping all over the floor." Nagisa opens a few cabinets until he finds some paper towels and shoves them into the tallers hands. "Go get a real towel and just stay in your room. I'll be there in a minute, I promise. Use these for now."

Karma frowns but does as he was told. He doesn't remember Nagisa ever being that pushy. Was it because he was drunk? Well, he didn't drink much, just three cans, and he could still talk, so that should count for something. He's speech didn't slur or anything, in fact, Karma had never felt so stress free. He mentally kicked himself for not trying this out sooner.

When he got back to his room he noticed two things: he no longer had that splitting head ache, and he was much more tired then he thought he was. Karma groaned and practically threw himself on the bed, enjoying the coolness of his pillows. He was hot, and still a little sticky, and the sheets only made it worse. He kicked the covers away from him and tried another position, but still felt restless - who knew you could be too tired to fall asleep.

"Nagisa!" He calls out, a bit louder the second time when he wasn't given a response. "Nagisa! What are you doing!?"

Silence.

Karma takes a deep breath. "NAGISA!"

"I'M COMING UP! CALM DOWN!" Footsteps could be heard rushing up the stairwell and down the hall, the blunet coming into the room with a small steaming bowl in his hands. "What is wrong with you!? It's five in the morning, cut it out!"

"Whats that?"

Nagisa scowls. "Don't change the subject-"

"Soup? Did you make that for me~?" Karma sits up and walks over to the him, snatching the bowl out of his hand. Nagisa yelps when a little bit of the steaming liquid gets on his hand.

"Karma- OW!"

Karma sniffed the bowl and playfully stuck out his tongue. It didn't smell like anything. It looked like a steaming bowl of water. _What is this stuff?_ He carefully examines it, but still couldn't see anything inside. Just clear liquid. "What did you-"

"It's broth." Nagisa says, annoyed. "It's something my mother makes whenever I'm sick or she has a bad hangover." He carefully takes the bowl away from him and puts it on the nightstand, shaking the burn off of his hand. "Just sit down."

Karma hazily continues to only stare at him, amazed just seeing him intact for so long. It was nice to see him glaring him down with both of his gorgeous blue eyes, it was nice to here him without any pain - it was nice to see him in one piece.

It was ridiculous how _relieved_ he was just looking at him, as if Nagisa was the most important thing to him. It was weird, strange even. It kind of felt like he was finally seeing his long lost lover after so many years.

It was just that scary.

"I want you to tell me why you've been acting so weird lately. And tell the truth."

The demand was subtle. Not to harsh, but not very kind either, and it's been like that since he got here. Karma was having a hard time figuring out how Nagisa really felt. Was he angry? Disappointed in him? No, that wasn't right-

"Since when do you drink? A-and why in the world would you drink so much!?" His voice wavered, not out of fear but something else. Worry?

Karma scratches his head. "I don't drink, not often that is. I've only tried that crap once and it was gross."

"Karma, your drunk now. You've had it more than once." Nagisa says bluntly. "Your lucky Koro sensie didn't catch you like this. Who knows hat he would do if you came to school with a hang over."

"You don't think I'm going to school tomorrow?"

Nagisa crosses his arms. "No, I _know_ your not because I'm not letting you go to school tomorrow. Now sit down."

Once again, Karma did as he was told, but he couldn't help but start to feel annoyed. Nagisa seemed extra pushy, and he was never really that pushy. It was kind irritating. He wanted to say something, speak up about the others odd behavior, but put all his thoughts aside after Nagisa took a seat beside him.

Silence came between the two, and it didn't seem like either of them really wanted to do anything about it. It was sort of uncomfortable, but Karma thought was best to keep that to himself. Nagisa looked lost in thought, sighing as he shifted into a more comfortable position. He looked at Karma, blue piercing red. It felt almost felt like a competition.

"Karma just tell me what's wrong."

Karma blinks and continues to stare, losing himself into those beautiful eyes of his. They were breathtaking. Maybe it was the alcohol talking, but they were seriously mesmerizing. He could stare at them for hours. "You really want to know?"

Nagisa doesn't say anything, he doesn't need to, so Karma continues.

"I've been having nightmares." The sentence rolls off his tongue so easily, and it amazes him just how clear it came out. He thought saying it would make things awkward, much worse then they were already, but no, it didn't do anything. Nagisa didn't look disgusted or weirded out, he didn't look sad or pitiful - he was none of those things - he didn't bat an eye.

However, even with the sense of relief Karma found it difficult to continue to admire his gaze, so he looks away, like the coward he was.

The smaller doesn't say anything about it, instead continuing to pry into the situation. "What kind of nightmares?" He asks, gently, and Karma appreciates that.

A light chuckle comes out of him before he answers. "Really weird ones."

Nagisa frowns. "How weird?"

"Very weird."

"Karma-"

"You died in most of them."

Now that takes him by surprise. Nagisa pulls back a bit and blinks a few times, staring at him in disbelief. The drunk suppresses the urge to laugh at the latter, knowing very well were that would get him. He knew something like this would happen, this is why he never wanted to tell Nagisa in the first place. _Ah, I scared him..._

To keep himself busy he reaches for the soup and puts the bowl in his lap, stirring the liquid a few times before taking a bite. It was good. Sure it burned his tongue a little bit, but besides that it really wasn't that bad.

His nerves ease a bit and he feels himself start to relax, eyes closing as he savors the taste. "This tastes great." He says, quietly, a lot less enthusiastic then he wanted it to sound. Nagisa nods but continues his questions.

"How would I die? In your dream I mean."

Karma takes another bite and swallows. "Do you really want to know?" Another nod. "Well, in one of them you were taken by some nasty pedophiles and repeatedly taken advantage of. I watched them rape and torture you in ways I didn't think were possible. In a more recent one I accidentally shot you in the throat and watched you bleed out. I was going for some robbers, but clearly I need to work on my aim. " He put the spoon down and started counting on his fingers. "In another one the both of us were beaten to death by some gang ,and in another one you slipped and fell on some train tracks, then the two of us got in a plane crash, you drowned while we were on vacation, hunting dogs took you apart while I was tied up for some reason-"

Nagisa continued to stare at him in disbelief, but never once tells him to stop. Karma decided to keep going.

"I was drugged and murdered you myself with a pocket knife in one dream - I even ate your fingers after chopping them off." A light chuckle, Nagisa doesn't say anything about it. "Then you were hit by a car, then you were beaten again by your mother, then you were strangled, shot again, skinned, gutted, suffocated, twisted, burned, raped again-"

"Hold on-"

"Drowned, hunted, poisoned - at some point you were even assassinated. I still don't know who did it - Burned, kidnapped, thrown off a cliff, executed for a something you didn't do-"

"Karma-"

More fingers. "Buried alive, experimented on, suffocated, beaten, drowned, choked- you were even dissected and I was forced to eat your damn organs."

"...Karma-"

"DAMN IT NAGISA, YOU DIED AND I DIDN'T DO SHIT!"

His hands were shaking, out of either rage or fear. Karma didn't know, nor did he really care. Breathing heavily he found it difficult to finish the soup, even after his headache came back. He bawls his fists up to keep them still, looking down at the bowl in his lap. The memories started to flood his mind again, and he couldn't help but let out a meek whine. It was pathetic, it sounded so needy and vulnerable. _Damn it..._ Tears started to fill his eyes and _god_ did he hate it. He hated feeling weak, weak weak! That's all Karma ever was, weak and useless! A coward!

A failure.

He felt horrible, and the buzz was starting to wear off. He couldn't look at the other, not now, and as thankful as he was for having someone to listen to him Karma wanted nothing more then to disappear. Something he probably would have already done if Nagisa wasn't here. The blunet didn't say anything else, he didn't know what to say, so instead he remained still, allowing Karma to just _enjoy_ his presence.

It grew quiet again, only the sound of light sniffles filling the silent void. Karma didn't know what to do.

The bowl of soup was suddenly lifted from his lap and placed back on the night stand, Nagisa being the one to get off the bed to do so. He sat down again, closer to the red head, but continued to stay quiet. It wasn't until after he gently grabbed his hand that Karma started to feel everything he's been holding back, Nagisa's smooth palms against his warm sweaty ones. Neither of them were really the sentimental type, but Nagisa just had his _way_ with others.

Nothing needed to be said when it came down to it, so Karma did the one thing he never, _ever_ thought he would do for such a stupid reason - for such a lousy reason. Karma did the one thing he hadn't done in many, _many_ years. He cried.

It almost stung when the tears fell from his eyes, a feeling long forgotten. He couldn't remember the last time he had done something like this in front of anyone, let alone Nagisa, one of bravest people he's ever met. It was almost funny how something so petty could be with someone so beautiful.

He rested his head on the others shoulder and gripped his hand, almost burying his face into his neck as he sobbed. A faint pulse was there, and that left a lump in Karma's throat. Subconsciously he shifted his hand to Nagisa's wrist, feeling the life he had flow threw him. Every heartbeat, every breath the smaller took, it was like a gift to him, and knowing that just made him cry harder.

If Karma didn't feel so _broken_ he would be more aware of the fact the Nagisa was holding him close, returning the favor. He had wrapped an arm around his pathetic form and hugged him the best way he could.

It hurt seeing someone like Karma be like this, so worn out and fragile. Nagisa wondered how long he went through this, how _painful_ it must have been to keep everything to himself, and no matter how he looked at it the situation felt unreal, like he was the one dreaming.

Even so he felt like Karma had taken a small part in this. He was the one that decided not to tell anyone and he was the one who got himself drunk like this, but holding a grudge didn't seem like a very good option. Not now that is.

Yes Nagisa was upset with him for not telling anyone sooner, and yes he had _a lot_ more questions that have yet to be answered, but there was a time and place for everything, and now was certainty not one of them.

* * *

 **Man, I thought this needed two chapters, but I guess it needs three. Ideas just keep piling up.**

 **Honestly, I wanted to end it somewhere around here, but there's so much more that needs to be said! The last chapter will be a lot more touching to the heart, I promise and all this pain will finally reach its end. Sorry this chapter took so long, a lot has happened lately.**

 **Anyways I hope you enjoyed it! Don't forget to comment, follow, favorite or do whatever this website has to offer. Thank you for reading! :)**


	3. Pretty in Pink

**What's this? Another chapter?**

 **Neat.**

 **(also, i'm really sorry for not updating. Just started college so things might be a little slow...)**

* * *

Nagisa didn't get to see his father very often.

It wasn't like he was trying to avoid him, in fact on a few occasions they would try meeting up with one another, but after not hearing from him for a few months, it was a bit strange.

No, Nagisa wasn't mad at his father. Yes, he left both him and his mother before he graduated elementary school, and yes they hadn't seen each other for almost an entire year after that, but Nagisa just couldn't stay angry with him, he had no reason to. It was actually quite understandable.

His mother was very controlling, and, frankly, fairly abusive, verbally. It was her who drove his father out of the house, not him, and if Nagisa remembered correctly, she was the one who chased him out, screaming about something to do with ruining a new dress she bought. She was _obsessed_ with keeping things her way, and made it almost absolute that nothing went against that policy.

That included Nagisa himself.

She wanted a girl, and because of that both him and his father had to suffer the consequences.

When Nagisa started preschool he had to wear dresses and put up his hair. No one but the teachers knew about his true gender, and none of them ever said anything until one of the girls had questioned him in the bathroom.

"Whats that thing between your legs?" She had asked. Nagisa doesn't remember his exact response, but he did recall a phone call home and his father picking him up that day.

If it weren't for him, he would have gone through a good part of his life not realizing who he really was.

His father was the one who gave him toys that _he_ actually wanted to play with, and not his mom. His father was the one who gave him "the talk" since his mother made him listen to a DVD on how to prevent pregnancy, and his father was the one who was secretly buying him proper clothing to change into before going to class behind his mothers back. He admired his father, but he couldn't ignore that small part of him that thought of the man as a coward for leaving him behind like that.

Nagisa sighs and puts his pencil down, running a hand through his long blue hair. He was having a hard time with homework, and it was going on ten o'clock, a school night. He wasn't entirely sure if they were all correct, but hey, he did give it his best. Numbers were never really his thing anyways.

 _Guess I'm going to have to stay after school with Koro sensie again for tutoring..._ The thought makes him uncomfortable. He's had to stay after for a few days now just to understand the subject, and yet he still had a hard time figuring out the equations. The hell is an invisible number anyways?

"Nagisa, I'm heading out!"

Nagisa perks up at the sound of his mothers voice, and looks at the time again. It was ten at night still right?

Curious he closes his book and heads down stairs, only to find his mother in her work attire. He yawns and scratches his arm. "Were you called in for work?"

His mother smiles at him, finishing the last button on her coat. "Mhm. I decided to start taking some of the night shifts. We could use the extra money, and I did want to buy something I had my eye on for a while."

Something inside Nagisa sinks. He looks away from her and back at the table. Probably another dress...

"I'll, uh, clean the dishes while your away. And I'll wrap something up for you to eat when you come home."

He's given a brighter smile along with a 'thank you' before receiving a light kiss to the forehead, her pale, slender fingers running themselves through his hair as she eyes him fondly. She looked at him this way whenever she reminds herself just how truly wonderful her _daughter_ really was, how pretty and thoughtful her loving _daughter_ was. Her most prize possession...

Nagisa stiffens, thankful to see her finally leave. He sighs again and takes his plate before bringing it upstairs, scarfing it down quickly before deciding to retire for the night. It was a bit early, but then again Nagisa was really tired.

* * *

The next day he had to excuse himself early after school to catch the train home.

Usually he would just go with Karma or perhaps with someone else, but unfortunately he didn't have time for that. He did feel a little bad however, not because he had to walk to the station alone, but because he didn't get to speak with Karma all day. Something seemed to be bothering the red head, and he couldn't exactly figure out why.

They had extended gym class courses today, and damn _everything_ just hurt.

Nagisa was skilled, but he wouldn't consider himself very athletic. He was stuck running around for almost a half hour without any breaks, and he would have passed out then and there if it hadn't been for Koro sensie sneaking them all water bottles with his super speed (Karasuma practically chewed him out when he was finally caught).

The train arrives a few minutes early, so he had time to catch himself a quick bite at some food stand before boarding, enough to keep him going until dinner.

He's going through his bag when he feels his phone start to vibrate, Kayano sending him a message.

 **Kayano, 5:23: - "Hey, did you notice Karma today?"**

She had mentioned something like this before, but that was while he was to busy trying to catch his breath after his fourth lap. She pointed out earlier that the red head didn't bother to make any kind of witty comment towards anyone who messed up, or how he never jumped at the opportunity to mock Takebayashi after he tripped and fell in a nasty puddle. Sure he had his charm, but it just didn't really seem like he was all there. And she was right.

Nagisa started to type a response.

 **Nagisa, 5:24 - "yeah. he didn't seem like himself today."**

 **Nagisa, 5:24 - "maybe somethings on his mind."**

He never really thought about it, but Karma's personal life was a bit of a mystery to him. They've been friends for quite a while, yet he still found it pretty difficult to figure him out. Not that Nagisa wanted to get to involved, it was none of his business, but if there was something that was stressing someone like Karma out, it had to be pretty serious.

Karma was always the level headed one. Nothing really got to him no matter how dangerous things got, which was also something Nagisa honestly worried about sometimes, especially after he literally risked his own life a few months ago just to prove a point. He was cunning and clever, but even so he knew better then to just keep it to himself. It wasn't like he was alone after all.

 **Kayano, 5:27 - "He's been like this for about a week. I don't know if I should tell Koro sensei or not."**

The thought had come to Nagisa once, but he had a feeling he shouldn't point it out to the teacher, not yet. He wanted to give Karma just a little more time, not wanting to burst that bubble to soon.

 **Nagisa, 5:28 - "give it time. i think he just needs some space for now."**

 **Kayano, 5:30 - "Certain?"**

No, Nagisa wasn't very keen with the idea, but he new if something was really wrong Karma would at least talk to Koro sensei about it at the very least, maybe even him. He wouldn't really consider them 'best friends' but they were close enough, right?

 **Nagisa, 5:32 - "yeah."**

He decides to change the topic, something about the nasty puddle Takebayashi fell into, and that seems to do the trick. Nagisa forgets about Karma for a while, but is reminded again when he just so happens to find a red pepper in his dinner that night, weird as it was.

His mother has to leave early again for the night shift, so she won't be able to stay for dinner. Now was a good time to tell her...

"Nagisa would you-"

"I'm going to visit dad next week."

It grows quiet, and Nagisa finds it hard to look at her. It's not like doesn't want him visiting his own father, in fact she could probably care less. She never got mad when he did, but it always felt...strange. The atmosphere would always grow slightly tense, just like it was now. It was uncomfortable, and Nagisa sought comfort in rolling the red pepper around on his plate using his fork, something to keep him busy, focused.

His mother takes another bite of her food, chews it, and then swallows. "Of course you can go see him. Just make sure you're chores are done before you leave alright?"

Nagisa gives a slow nod. "Yeah."

"By the way Nagisa, I have something special for you!" She wipes her hands with her napkin before standing up, motioning Nagisa to come follow her. "Come upstairs."

Nagisa stops his motion. The atmosphere isn't tense anymore. It's suffocating.

He drags out a quiet sigh, slowly putting the utensil down. Something about his mothers tone was unsettling. She wasn't looking at her son anymore, but her daughter. Nagisa needed to be careful.

"Ok." Nagisa smiles, and his mother does the same.

He takes his time, putting away the dishes and rinsing them out before following suit, and by the time he gets upstairs he peeks into her room and spots something pink.

 _Very_ pink.

It's a dress. The one his mother has been saving up for.

She's smiling, holding the garment out in front of her before twirling it for Nagisa to see. He would be lying if he said it wasn't pretty, it really did look nice, expensive too. _Kayano would like this._ He pictures the female wearing it, smiling with flushed cheeks while thanking him for such a beautiful gift. He loves the thought, but it's not enough to take away the hatred he held against it.

The dress was for him. Not Kayano.

"I just picked it up today from the tailor. It should slip on fairly easily, so you wont need my help this time." His mother giddily walks over to him and hold it against him, covering her mouth with her free hand. "Ah, your going to look so beautiful! Go on, try it on for me!"

Nagisa doesn't move, he can't, and it takes a small nudge from his mother for him to finally take the piece out of her hands. Its soft to the touch, the material thin. It wouldn't be hard to tear it apart.

He changes in the bathroom, slow and deliberate, fixing the large bow in the back before zipping himself up. He avoids the mirror entirely, not wanting to see how ridiculous he looked, but that changes as soon as he steps back into the bedroom.

His mother compliments him, running her fingers through his hair before telling him to sit on the bed. She grabs a brush and a few elastics, carefully pulling up his hair into a neat pony tail before turning him to look at himself through the large mirror on the wall.

He looks ridiculous.

"Nagisa~ you're beautiful! You remind me of myself when I was your age..."

She doesn't look away, doesn't stop smiling. It was uncomfortable. Nagisa was _very_ uncomfortable.

He stays quiet, taking the compliments she had for him. 'your hair is beautiful, Nagisa' 'your skin is so soft' 'Nagisa, your going to make a beautiful bride some day'

 _I look ridiculous..._

Nagisa can't move, and he doesn't dare try.

Time passes, how much, Nagisa can't tell, but his mother had looked at her watch and realized that she was late for work. She didn't sound surprised, casually giving her daughter one last loving glance.

She had to leave. Nagisa had to change.

As soon as the door closes everything is quiet again. The tension is gone. Nagisa could finally relax.

He unties his hair and takes off the dress, carefully putting it back in his mothers closet before exiting the room. He didn't feel like finishing the rest of his homework tonight.

* * *

It's almost midnight when Nagisa comes to the terrible conclusion that there would be absolutely no sleep for him tonight, and he excepts that.

He knew he would regret it in the morning, but that was a problem meant for the future.

He's playing around on his phone when he thinks of Karma again, going through the lot of his many photo's and finding one koro sensie took of them at the theater together. He'll never forget that day. The movie was alright, but it was more fun seeing how emotional his teacher had gotten over every scene. First he would laugh, then he would cry, and then he would get angry, laugh again, and cry again- "he needs chocolate" Karma had commented. Nagisa lightly smacked him on the arm for that.

It was fun. The experience was unforgettable, he wondered if Karma felt the same way.

 _Karma..._

Nagisa finds himself looking at the contact. Was he even awake at this hour?

 **Nagisa, 11:37 - "hey, you still awake?"**

A pretty bold move he dared to say so himself, but it was worth a try anyways. He decides to scroll through a few more of his photo's before a subtle 'ping' goes off, and he's received a new message.

 **Karma, 11:37 - "wow Nagisa, isn't it past your bedtime? i'm surprise your still awake after that extra training course we had today."**

 _He responded?_

Taken back a bit Nagisa pulls himself up more within the covers, getting in a more comfortable position. He almost rolls his eyes to the response.

 **Nagisa, 11:39 - "very funny, you know all we did was an extra lap. but i'm doing fine thank you."**

The conversation lasts a lot longer then he anticipated.

He asks Karma how he was doing, if everything was alright, but of course his questions were evaded. He was worried now, but only a little bit, and he told Karma that, reluctantly.

There was a long pause. Nagisa assumes it's because Karma went to bed, but something doesn't feel right.

He waits a little longer, deciding to search for his charger when his phone battery hits ten percent, however when he finds it Karma still hasn't responded. He worries a little more.

Nagisa asks if he was still there, and he was, but the conversation has dulled. Karma makes a typo, a rare site. Nagisa chuckles when he makes the correction. Watching Karma make any mistake was sort of a treat, a guilty pleasure of his that he would never admit to anyone, but then again, Karma didn't usually make mistakes, none that he was aware of anyways. _He must be pretty tired,_ Nagisa thought, looking into another message.

Karma asks him why he's still up. Nagisa evades the question using one of Karma's witty comments. Now he was the one avoiding the problem. This was getting them no were.

He's hesitant, but Nagisa can't help but ask the other whats wrong again, even through something like a text message Karma just didn't seem like himself.

 **Karma, 12:13 - "I'm alright Nagisa, really."**

Karma responds, but it's a lie. A big lie. Nagisa was really worried now.

He can't think of anything else to say, and looking at the time. It was probably best that they end things now. They had a test tomorrow, Nagisa needed to focus. His response is simple.

 **Nagisa, 12:15 - "Alright then."**

As predicted, Nagisa didn't get a wink of sleep.

* * *

It's five in the morning when his mother comes home.

She wakes him up and tell him he needs to get dressed. Nagisa blinks several times.

"...what?"

"Today's your fathers birthday, remember? You should surprise him and see him today."

He lazily reaches for his phone. It's dead. He forgot to plug the charger in last night.

Fantastic.

"If you hurry now I can get you to the station before five. You should arrive around seven or eight, so make sure you have something light to eat. He might have something for you there."

"Mom, what the hell are you saying?" He's sitting up now, rubbing his eyes and yawning into the darkness of his room. The sun wasn't even up yet, and he's only been asleep for what, two hours? What was she doing?

"Don't give me that look, Nagisa. It's been a while since your fathers seen you, so why don't you surprise him today.

 _What the hell?_

Something was wrong. Something was definitely _very_ wrong, and Nagisa needed to find out.

He got out of bed, and was startled to find out that his mother had already picked out an outfit for him - a yellow skirt and pink blows.

No.

Absolutely _not_.

"I have some left over eggs that I couldn't eat, you can have the rest if you like, but eat what you can, ok?"

"H-hold on! Why do I have to wear-"

"I have to take a quick shower before we head out, so just make sure you grab everything you need in the mean time, alright? If you want to spend the night there that's fine to."

"Wait, mom-"

She leaves before he has time to finish, and now Nagisa's stuck.

He...really had to wear that. In public.

By himself.

 _Hell. No._

He remembers the times he spent dressed like that in elementary school. Why would she want to bring this back now? Was it because he was going to see his dad? Was it because he had to ditch school? None of it made any sense!

Nagisa looks back at the outfit, nicely folded up for him and placed on his desk. It was frustrating. _Infuriating_. He couldn't do this! He didn't have to do this!...but he does.

He knew his mother better then anyone else, and denying her wishes would only lead to something _no one_ wanted to go through.

He was twelve the first time he denied her, a few months after his dad left him. His mother wanted to go to the grocery store with him for some 'mother-daughter time', and Nagisa doesn't remember what he said exactly, but he does remember that that day was the first time his mother actually raised a hand on him.

She struck him in the face, and it caught both of them by surprise. It was so quiet, and Nagisa had never seen his mother cry so hard in his life. She wouldn't stop apologizing, holding him in a tight embrace as she poured her heart out to him. Nagisa remembers crying a long with her, he doesn't know how long.

That's why he puts on the outfit.

It was uncomfortable. Unlike the dress, everything was more revealing. It was..breezy. Free. Nagisa can't look at himself in the mirror.

He heads downstairs, looking down at the floor the entire time. He can't look his mother in the eye, he can't hear her praise, instead he follows her out the door and into the car. Not a word. Not a sound. Nagisa bites his lip.

Breath.

Everything's fine.

"I have some money for you in my wallet just in case you want something sweet." His mother hums. "I know how much you like crepes! I use to take you out for some every time you came home with a good test grade."

Nagisa nods at the memory. His favorite was chocolate, his mother always bought him chocolate. He still liked the sweet, but he wouldn't consider it his favorite anymore, not after he dropped it on his new dress that one time. She scolded him in public, scolding her misbehaved daughter. The next day he received a new one as an apology for embarrassing him in public.

"Oh, you have a strand of hair sticking out- ah, on second thought, it's not a big deal. You still look lovely as it is. Your father is going to be so happy to see you."

His father. His father was going to pity him, probably get him something more decent to wear as soon as he arrives to. Thankfully Nagisa was able to sneak a pair of boxers into his bag without his mother noticing. He gives a genuine smile, a convincing one.

"Do you like that new case I bought for you? I haven't seen you put it on yet. If you don't like it I can always get you another one. You do like purple, yes? Perhaps something blue?"

"Um," Nagisa fumbles for words. "Y-yeah. Blue's...a nice color..." He shrugs his shoulders. "But the one I have now is fine."

His mother sighs. "Nagisa, don't lie to me. You would rather have the blue one, right? I'll get you the blue one as soon as I can so don't worry about it." She's smiling again. It bothers Nagisa a lot. He starts to play with his skirt.

 _Breath_

"Mom... Why am I going to see dad? Now, I mean." He shifts his attention out the window. "I have school today, and a test so-"

"I know Nagisa, but he's been really busy with his new job and all and this is the only time you'll get to see him. Just trust me on this, alright?" She flicks on the radio and starts to briefly search through channels. "By the way, how is school so far? I see you up pretty late working on some math problems- oh, this is a good song!"

"I-I'm doing fine." He nervously scratches the back of his neck. "I was just getting ready for the test."

"Well that's good to hear."

Nagisa runs out of things to say, and it grows quiet for the rest of the ride, but neither seem to really mind.

The train arrives just in time, and Nagisa bids his mother an awkward fair well before boarding. He's still dazed, tired. Everything was awkward. Nothing made sense.

He's surrounded by an unfamiliar crowd, people that weren't regulars compared to those he saw before school. He sat in a corner, head down and legs close together. Thankfully he didn't have any problems, it was however uncomfortable when an older man sat beside him the rest of the way, a little to close for comfort. Nagisa caught him taking quick glances at him every now and then, and he was very close to telling him off, but he was almost there. Just a little longer.

He pulls out his phone and and is about to send Kayano a quick message, something worth distracting himself until he needs to leave, but it's dead. He forgot to charge it.

 _Damn it..._ Nagisa awkwardly stares at the black screen momentarily before slowly slipping it back into his pocket, the man beside him shifting a little and his personal bubble finally pops.

Thankfully the man never speaks to him, and Nagisa gets off without uttering a word, ignoring the uncomfortable stares behind him.

His fathers place was a little smaller compared to his own, an apartment. It was decent, carrying two bedrooms and a simple bathroom, nothing to much, but it was enough for Nagisa's taste.

He was finally home.

It's a fifteen minute walk, and not wanting many to recognize him he refuses a cab. He spotted a few of his fathers co workers at a local restaurant having a few drinks, and it's suddenly difficult to walk in shoes that weren't his own. One of them whistles, but he's not entirely sure if it's at him or someone from behind, Nagisa doesn't bother turning around to find out.

He arrives at the complex and can't quite remember how long it's been since he's last been here. A few months? A year? _They re-did the garden,_ he realizes, and it doesn't look half bad either considering the weather they've been having.

With a heavy sigh Nagisa slowly makes his way to the door. He notices despite how different many of the current tenants were, their housings remained very similar, but even so it wasn't long before he found the right one, his fathers.

He's hesitant, his hand hovering close above the closed entrance for a moment. Nagisa bites his lip, knocking on the door a little faster then he would have done so if not for the sudden intrusion.

It grows quiet. He can't hear anything inside. Curious he knocks a few more times, slower and a little louder.

"Coming~!" Comes a voice.

Not his fathers.

The door swings open, and Nagisa finds himself looking at someone he doesn't recognize.

It was a women, a tall one with long blond hair and bubbly green eyes. The two are staring at one another, surprised.

 _Who..._

"Oh my gosh! You are just _adorable_ in that little skirt! You know, I have one that looks just like that one! Except it's pink, with white stripes. Oh, maybe it'll fit you- no wait, it might be a little to small..."

Nagisa takes a step back. "W-wha?"

"Seiko, who is it?" His father asks from inside, and the women shouts over her shoulder,

"It's a cute little girl! I think she's lost or something, but she's as cute as a button!" The women claps her hands together and chuckles. "What's your name sweetie? Do you need any help, hm? Can't find your mommy?"

Nagisa still has trouble finding the right words. He doesn't know what...or rather 'who' he was looking at. Did he know her? Was he suppose to know her? "Uh, um..." He clears his throat. "...Hi?"

She makes a sort of squealing noise, something Nagisa could have swore he heard Koro sensie make when Itona pulled a fast one on him after class, nicking one of his tentacles just a little bit with a some kind of hand made weapon that looked awfully similar to a pocket knife. She was flushing a little bit, hands moving rapidly in various gestures.

"Oh my gosh, even your voice is adorable! Ah, you almost remind me of me when I was your age!" She goes on and on about utter nonsense, and Nagisa tries to ask questions, but she's not paying much attention anymore.

At some point she allows him inside, offering him the phone if he needed to call anyone. She continues to talk, it's annoying. His father shows up moments later, and for a moment he's taken back a little. He goes to say something, but the women beats him to it.

"Isn't she just adorable!? Like a doll! Don't you think she's cute, hon?!"

It's quiet. Awkward. Neither one of them know what to say.

 _This person..._

Nagisa's aware now. She was a companion.

Was this why his mother rushed him here? To spite him. How the hell did she even know? It felt like a joke, a stupid prank that wasn't even remotely funny. If Nagisa knew any better-

 _Damn it..._

"Nagisa," His father finally croaks. He clears his throat and gives a pathetic wave. "Hey."

Nagisa still can't talk. He looks at the women, then back at his father. His mouth is hung open - shocked, confused. He's still trying to process all of this. It was...weird, uncomfortable. It was almost like being put in that stupid dress. It didn't feel right.

He felt betrayed.

"I have some snacks for you if your hungry." The female offers.

Nagisa still doesn't answer.

She practically skips into the kitchen to get whatever she needed, and it's just the two of them now. His father looks hurt now, not for himself, but for Nagisa. He could probably see how confused his son was, how odd everything was. He's saying something, but Nagisa ignores him, he's to focused on the light humming coming from the other room. Who was she?

Nagisa closes his mouth, fidgeting with the hems of his skirt. He slowly takes a deep breath, in and out. It's shaky, uneven. He tries again.

Breath.

Everything's fine...

"Nagisa, listen I-"

"It's alright." He cuts in, but he's not trying. His voice is low, shallow.

His father looks away. "Um...it's nice to see you again."

Nagisa only nods, letting the conversation fall flat.

He doesn't know what else to say. There was nothing to say. Everything was fine. Everything was going to be alright.

Nagisa was going to be just fine.

* * *

 **Well, now we know whats going on with Nagisa. There will be more Karmagisa next chapter so hang in there.**

 **Thank you for all the support you've given this little fic! It's very appreciated! Reviews are very helpful btw, so please feel free to leave one.**

 **Hope you enjoyed it!**


	4. Worry

**I'm so late with this...**

* * *

She made apple slices for them, all of which were cut out to resemble small rabbits. There were too many for Nagisa to consume.

He sat quietly and listened to what she had to say, nonsense that went over his head more then once, a conversation similar to what the girls would discuss with with Bitch sensie - nothing that interested him. Much like his father he nodded every now and then whenever she looked at him, and thankfully she didn't seem to pay mind to it.

It doesn't go unnoticed how comfortable she made herself to be around his father; the bits of clothing lying about carelessly, hair accessories sprawled around on the counter, and her shoes were neatly placed near the entrance way.

Nagisa had so many questions, like how long had she been living here? Why hasn't his father ever mentioned her? He knew nothing about her! It was uncomfortable...

"Oh! It's almost time!" She reaches for her phone and giggles.

His father sits up. "Already?"

"Yep! They should be here any minute! Sorry, babe!" She quickly jumps from her seat as she stuffs a few things into her purse, kissing his father on the cheek before sending a friendly wave in Nagisa's direction. "I hope to see you again soon, Nagisa! Maybe when I get back we can have some girl talk!" She runs into the next room and gathers a few more items. "I'll call before I get back!"

The door slams shut behind her, and light humming could be heard as she trails down the hallway, the same happy tune as before. It isn't until it grows completely silent again does it hit Nagisa that he was finally alone with his father. The two shift awkwardly in their seats, Nagisa biting into his rabbit before his father lets out a heavy sigh.

"Nagisa, listen-"

"It's fine. Dad." He swallows and looks away. "Actually, I'm happy. I mean..." Some more awkward shifting. "Um, how did you meet her?"

There's a small pause. "I've, um... known her for about a month."

"Oh." Is the only thing Nagisa can think of, and the two are left in silence once again. The wall clock ticks idly, and the teen actually finds himself mentally counting each second until a full minute had gone by. It's the sound of the house phone that finally breaks the tension, a faint ring that could be heard from another room.

"I-I'll get it-" He clears his throat before rising from his chair. "Please excuse me."

Nagisa nods and watches him head off around the corner. He glances over at the other plate left behind and sees that the fruit had been left untouched.

A muffled voice could be heard in his fathers direction, followed by the occasional movement of the creaky floorboards. He looks down at lap and remembers the outfit he was in, tugging at the hem of his skirt in a more self conscious matter before heading over to his fathers room.

 _I need to get out of this thing..._

He finds some old jeans and a wrinkled top that seemed about his size, of course nothing his dad owned would really fit him, but anything was better then what he currently had on. _Anything_. So some saggy sweats and a tank-top it is.

Some time passes before his father comes to find him again, sprawled out on the bed and watching television. He smiles. "You know I do have some spare clothes for you."

Nagisa perks up. "Really?"

"Yeah, but if your comfortable in that it's fine." He makes his way over to the closet and pulls out a shirt and some work pants. "They called me in, so I'll be gone for a few hours."

"Is that what that call was about?"

His father shifts his gaze. "Well...yes and no. It's a long story-" He gestures a hand around the room. "Feel free to make yourself comfortable...and-"

Nagisa smiles. "I'm not going to tape over any of your recordings."

"I sure hope not."

"Unless I find something better."

He chuckles. "Whatever you say."

The elephant in the room is completely ignored, and right now, it was probably for the best. Nagisa was here for his father, someone he hasn't seen a while. He wasn't going to play along with his mothers little game, and he sure as hell wasn't going to butt into his fathers personal life.

Things were safe here. He was fine. Here he was aloud to be himself.

"I have some left overs in the fridge, but just in case you don't like anything you see I'm going to leave some money out for you if you want to order pizza. Oh, and the guest room is available if you get tired." He straightens out his tie in the mirror and fiddles around with his hair. Nagisa watches this unfamiliar ritual quietly, seeing how similar their tastes in clothing were, something plain and simple (Rio has already set a date for them to go shopping to change this). _This was nice._ Nagisa can't remember the last time he actually felt at home.

His father bids a short farewell before heading out, nothing Nagisa wasn't use to. When they lived together something as simple as a head nod could mean a lot to him. The both never had a lot to say anyways.

It's an hour until midnight when he remembers his cell phone. He uses an outlet set by the bed and waits a few minutes for the devise to turn on again, thankful to see that he hadn't missed any calls, but there were a few unopened messages, three of which were from Kayano.

 **Kayano, 10:38 - "Nagisa~ Where were u today? DX"**

 **Kayano, 10:42 - "The test was awful! Pretty sure I need to make it up."**

 **Kayano, 10:59 - "Karma skipped out again btw."**

He rolled his eyes at the last message, but then recalls his last conversation with the red head. It was short lived, but like many of there conversations Karma was the one who did most of the messaging believe it or not, mostly to tease his friend to some degree. That time however was different, it almost felt Nagisa himself was leading the conversation. A minor detail, but it bothered him none the less.

 _Maybe somethings bothering Karma?_ The thought has crossed his mind, more than once. But nothing bothers Karma. He's...well, Karma. Then again, it wasn't like he didn't have feelings. There was a heart in there somewhere, beating like the rest of theirs. Sure it worked a little differently, but it was there, and it took a while for Nagisa to figure out how it worked. _Maybe I should call him or something._ He starts to dial when another message pops into his inbox.

 **Kayano, 11:45 - "Are you alright? Feeling ok?"**

Nagisa decides to respond with an emoji, one with a goofy smile. He immediately receives a response.

 **Kayano, 11:45 - "So your not sick?"**

 **Nagisa, 11:46 - "What made you think I was sick?"**

 **Kayano, 11:46 - "Took a guess. Gonna be here tomorrow then?** **"**

Ah. Tomorrow.

He takes a bit of time breaking down his situation, careful to not give away to much. Not everyone needed to know about his situation with his mother. Kayano seems to understand, and the two of them start to go on about other things. She takes up a lot of his time, but Nagisa enjoys it, and the feeling seems to be mutual.

Everything was ok.

*(*)*(*)*(*)*

He wakes up at three in the morning to the blaring sound of a familiar tv commercial, a women chanting to the rhythm of a slow drum - some insurance deal.

His father wasn't home yet.

 _Is he pulling an all nighter?_ Nagisa frowns at the idea of having his father come home so exhausted. He remembers they last time they meet up discreetly, Nagisa could see the bags he had under his eyes despite the concealing make up. When he asked about them his father simply laughed it off, something about watching to many late night tv shows.

Kayano had sent him a picture of a sleeping cat hours ago, and looking over the unfinished message he was going to send her, he's been asleep for a while now.

Then there was another message, one from Isogai.

 **Isogai, 1:12 - "If you like I could give you some tips on that test soon. It actually wasn't as bad as I thought it would be."**

Nagisa feels a little relieved. Maybe all that studying would pay off after all.

 **Nagisa, 3:31 - "Is tomorrow, ok?"**

 **Karma, 3:32 - "whats going on tomorrow?"**

 _Karma?...Ah!_

He must have been more tired then he let on. Nagisa looks at the clock again. It was a half hour to four. Why was he still awake?

 **Nagisa, 3:37 - "wait, your still up?"**

 **Karma, 3:37 - "Where were you today?**

 _Where was I?_ Nagisa sends, and Karma reminds him of the test. He makes an excuse for it. There was always the make up test, something he didn't do very often, and one time wasn't going to exactly give him a failing grade for the semester.

 _Something isn't right..._

Nagisa has sent him late messages before, once being over a favorite pencil he left on his desk that Karma knew about. It was an hour before class did the red head finally respond. Point being - Karma liked his sleep. And now that they were sending messages back and fourth at three in the morning, it didn't sit well with the blue haired assassin.

Why was Karma-

"Shouldn't you be asleep?"

Nagisa nearly drops his phone. "WHAT THE - RITSU!?"

The female replaces the message screen of his cell with her profile image, giggling as she does. "Sorry, didn't mean to startle you like that."

"W-What are you doing in my-!? Wait, no, _why_ are you in my phone?!"

"Um, actually, Bitch sensie asked me to do this."

"She did _what_!?"

What the hell was this!? What the hell was she doing!? Nagisa scrambled for words. _Why would she tell Ritsu to...How long had she been on his phone!?_

"Ah, nice cat picture by the way! I sent that to Kayano last week actually!"

"Hey! Stop looking at my messages! And quit going through my phone without permission!"

"But I did get permission, from Bitch sensie."

"Why would she ask you to go through my phone of all things!?" He scoffs. "AND THIS IS NOT HER PHONE!"

Ritsu sighs. "She wanted me to see if you were having secret meetings with Karma. You both were gone today, you know? It was a little suspicious."

Nagisa flushed. "What kind of relationship does she think we have!?" He takes a moment to calm himself, collect his thoughts and regain most of his composure. He was going to have to deal with Bitch sensie later... "Alright. Fine, whatever. Actually, now that your here I have a question for you, about Karma."

"Oh?"

"You said he left class, did Koro sensie do anything about it?"

She starts to think. "Not this time, no."

 _Odd..._ Nagisa wouldn't call Koro sensie a strict teacher, but he certainly did take his job seriously. He wouldn't let something like this go over looked. It just wasn't in his nature.

"So he just, let him go?" He asks.

"That sounds about right. But if you ask me, it's more than likely Koro sensei knew where he was the entire time." She hums. "I mean, it would explain why he was late to class."

Nagisa scratches his cheek, giving the female a perplexed look. "Hang on," he returns to his messages and goes over his past conversations with the red head. None of them seemed...Karma, to put it bluntly. It didn't look right at all.

Something was definitely wrong.

He sends him another message, asking him if everything was alright. The response isn't reassuring at all.

Why was he feeling like this? Nagisa wouldn't necessarily consider them close, but they were friends right? He could worry about him, right? Sure Karma could handle himself, but that doesn't make him invincible or anything. He needed to know more.

"Ritsu, I need you to go into Karma's phone and spy on him a bit."

"Or~" She quickly side glances over to the window. "You can go see him yourself-"

"What do you mean?"

...

...

...Oh _hell_ _no._

He angrily gets up and storms over to the window, sliding open the curtains only to see his home room teacher staring at him through the other end of the glass.

"KORO SENSEI!?"

"Eep!"

The assassin clutches his phone. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING AT MY HOU-" He takes a breath. "... _Here._ What the HELL are you doing _here_!?"

"I..um, well-" He looks away. "Er-"

Nagisa pinches the bridge of his nose. "Please don't tell me both you and bitch sensei thought of this."

The octopus puts his tentacles together sheepishly. "I have no idea what you mean-"

"Yep! They both wanted to know what you guys were up to!" Ritsu states.

Nagisa doesn't miss when he throws the remote at him.

 _ **1 HIT!**_

* * *

 **So yeah. Almost done.**

 **I have no excuse for this being so late.**

 **There should be one more chapter (again sorry for the tardiness) Remember comments always help! Thank you for reading!**


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